Wetwang
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Template:Infobox UK place Wetwang is a Yorkshire Wolds village and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England, Template:Convert west of Driffield on the A166 road.
At the 2011 census, it had a population of 761,<ref name="2011 census">Template:NOMIS2011</ref> an increase on the 2001 census figure of 672.<ref name="2001 census">Template:NOMIS2001</ref> Template:Clear left
Name
There are two interpretations of the name. One is from the Old Norse vaett-vangr, or 'field for the trial of a legal action'. Another theory is that it was the "Wet Field" compared to the nearby dry field at Driffield.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
The name is jokingly defined in The Meaning of Liff by Douglas Adams as meaning "a moist penis".<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> In some varieties of English, wang or whang is a slang term for penis.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite OED</ref> The name Wetwang has frequently been noted on lists of unusual place names.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
History
The village is known for its Iron Age chariot burial cemetery at Wetwang Slack,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and it has been speculated that the unlocated Romano-British town of Delgovicia may have been at what is now Wetwang.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Before the Norman Conquest (TRE) Ealdraed held Wetwang, and it was worth £4 per year in rent.Template:Sfn The village is mentioned twice in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Wetuuangha. The lesser mention simply records its existence: "In Wetwang the archbishop Template:Frac carucates". The mention is under "Warter Hundred" on original folio 381V: East Riding.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Earlier in the Domesday Book, there is a fuller description (Folio 302V: Yorkshire) within the listing of the land of the Archbishop of York:Template:Blockquote A carucate is the area of land a man with 8 oxen can plough in a season, sometimes cited as around Template:Convert. In Wetwang there were Template:Frac of them available for the tax take ("geld"). A "plough" was a carucate which was being ploughed, rather than grazed or fallow. A league is around Template:Convert. After the conquest, Wetwang was waste land held by Archbishop Thomas. Template:Sfn
St Nicholas's Church is of Norman origin and was restored between 1845 and 1902. In 1966, the church was designated a Grade II* listed building.<ref>Template:National Heritage List for England</ref> It is on the Sykes Churches Trail devised by the East Yorkshire Churches Group.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The church has a ring of three bells (tenor Template:Long ton in A), the oldest of which (the tenor) dates from Template:Circa.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Wetwang was once known for its black swans, after which the village pub, the Black Swan, is named.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Public transport
Until 1950, the village was served by Wetwang railway station, on the Malton to Driffield Line, but this line has closed.<ref>Template:Butt-Stations</ref> The village is now served by an infrequent East Yorkshire Motor Services bus.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Honorary mayor
Richard Whiteley of the Channel 4 quiz show Countdown held the honorary title Mayor of Wetwang from 1998 until his death in 2005.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On 25 June 2006, local weather forecaster Paul Hudson from BBC Look North was invested as Whiteley's successor.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
| Year | Mayor |
|---|---|
| 1998–2005 | Richard Whiteley |
| 2006– | Paul Hudson |
References
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